Slipping U’s host eager Grecians

The terribly out-of-form Colchester United host Exeter City on Tuesday evening.

The recent demise of Newport County’s league results has opened up a big opportunity for Matt Taylor’s Grecians; a win on Tuesday night will see them move into the top seven.

The side based in Devon enjoyed a brilliant start to the campaign which saw them flying high in the League Two standings. They never capitulated but their form became gradually less impressive as the season continued. Despite falling out of the play-off fold, Exeter are still very much within touching distance of the high-flyers.

For that, they can thank their goalscoring figures. Despite having played fewer matches than most other sides in the division, the Grecians have the best scoring record, having converted 49 goals in their 27 matches. These figures come as no surprise when you consider their striking options. Ryan Bowman is a reliable scorer in the fourth tier and hasn’t failed to live up to his expectations with 12 goals so far this season. Fellow striker Matt Jay follows closely behind with 11 this campaign.

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Whilst scoring goals isn’t a problem for Exeter, it has been lately for Tuesday’s hosts.

Colchester have failed to score in seven of their last nine games and have picked up just six points from their last possible 36.

Such a drop in form has seen Steve Ball’s side plummet to 20th in the League Two standings and, if they do not pick up results soon, could join the dreaded relegation battle.

The U’s recruited Frank Nouble in the January transfer window and an awful lot of responsibility now lies with him to resurrect his side’s goalscoring ability, being one of the very few striking options available to Ball.

This season’s previous meeting between the two sides will for sure live long in the memory of Colchester fans. A 6-1 defeat at St James’ Park condemned the North Essex side to their heaviest defeat of the season, with Bowman netting an impressive second half hat-trick. The U’s will be sure not to let that happen again, but stopping Tuesday’s opponents is much easier said than done.

However, the hosts will be boosted by the absence of Bowman for their opponents as he serves a three-match suspension for his sending off against Newport County last time out. This could see an opportunity arise for either Alex Fisher or Ben Seymour to stake their claim in this Exeter side. Alex Hartridge will also be missing for the Grecians through suspension.

Lewis Page and Rory McCardle could be back in contention for Exeter after recovering from their respective injuries, but striker Nicky Ajose will be unavailable for the visitors.

As for Colchester United, Harry Pell was removed from play last time out against Crawley Town and seems unlikely to feature against Exeter. Otherwise, they have no new injury concerns as Ball continues to try and find a system to arrest the poor form they have been enduring.

The U’s will be desperate to put an end to their poor run, and it has to happen eventually. However, Exeter are a top League Two side and it is hard to see how Colchester could get the better of them. Stranger things have happened, but the hosts really have to sort themselves out, work for each other and avoid slipping into the relegation mix.